Naruto: I Became Tsunade's Husband and Took Over Konoha

Chapter 545 - 544: Could the New Weapons Be Made Available?

After enthusiastically interacting with the people of the Rock Branch for quite a while, Madara Uchiha finally decided to end the commotion.

He turned to Onoki and commanded in an indisputable tone, "You go and disperse the crowd. The Hokage’s time is extremely precious. We cannot waste too much time here."

Hearing this, Onoki’s face changed dramatically, and the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.

He cursed inwardly, ’Well, aren’t you the smooth one, Minister? Just a flick of your lips, and you’ve so easily pushed this thankless task of upsetting the people onto me.’

Onoki stood in place, his mind racing as he pondered how to handle this situation.

Suddenly, he had a brainwave. His eyes lit up as he thought of a brilliant idea. He turned to Kitsuchi and said to him with a serious expression, "Son, the time has come to test you. Look, the Hokage is surrounded by so many people. Go and step forward to receive the Hokage and bring him over!"

When Kitsuchi heard his father’s words, he was dumbfounded. He opened his eyes wide, looking at Onoki with an expression of utter astonishment, as if he couldn’t believe his ears.

He inwardly lamented, ’Great, you really are my dear father. At a time like this, you push me out as a shield. Besides, don’t you have that guy Deidara? Why not send him?’

His eyes revealed clear reluctance, as if he were full of resistance to what was about to happen.

Then, he slowly raised his hand and pointed straight at Deidara.

Seeing this, Onoki’s expression stiffened abruptly. His originally somewhat relaxed face instantly darkened, showing displeasure.

One must know, Deidara was Onoki’s treasure!

Although he might not be able to defeat powerful opponents of the Kage-level like Madara Uchiha, his area-of-effect damage capability was absolutely not to be underestimated, even comparable to the legendary Susano’o!

Naturally, Onoki cherished and protected such an important figure dearly. The idea of someone causing damage to Deidara’s reputation was simply intolerable to Onoki!

Therefore, Onoki glared, emanating an imposing aura, and stared straight at the person who had displeased him.

Seeing Onoki’s reaction from the side, Kitsuchi’s mouth twitched slightly.

He knew very well how much Onoki valued Deidara, so he could only resign himself to his fate.

Immediately after, Kitsuchi quickly picked up the microphone at the broadcast station and shouted to the crowd, "Attention, everyone, attention! The Hokage has arrived to visit the Rock Branch. Time is limited. Please make way, allow the Hokage to come through."

Hearing the broadcast, the crowd let out a collective sigh. They understood the priorities and knew what was most important.

So, everyone sensibly made a path to allow Ryun Uchiha to pass through smoothly.

Ryun Uchiha smiled, giving a friendly wave to the crowd, and said, "Everyone, until next time!" As his words fell, he unhesitatingly strode towards Madara Uchiha’s direction.

Before long, Ryun Uchiha and Madara Uchiha walked side by side towards the Tsuchikage building, gradually moving farther away.

The Konoha Anbu members followed not far behind Ryun Uchiha. Following closely behind them was the Rock Branch Anbu led by Kitsuchi. Their steps were somewhat heavy, forming a stark contrast to the lightness of the Konoha Anbu.

The Rock Branch Anbu members stared intently at the equipment and technological ninja tools on the Konoha Anbu, their eyes revealing envy and longing.

These advanced pieces of equipment and ninja tools undoubtedly made them yearn, for in this competitive ninja world, having better gear meant greater strength.

Kitsuchi noticed the gazes of his Rock Branch Anbu members. The corner of his mouth couldn’t help but twitch slightly.

He knew very well that the craftsmanship for these technological ninja tools and that set of new-style ninja gear originated from Konoha. Moreover, Konoha had kept all those master craftsmen there.

This made him feel utterly helpless, as he simply could not provide his Rock Branch Anbu with these advanced pieces of equipment.

The number of technological ninja tools distributed by Konoha was extremely limited, no more than ten sets in total.

One set naturally went to the Minister, and the rest were allocated to other key personnel. For the Rock Branch Anbu, obtaining extra technological ninja tools was almost impossible.

Kitsuchi helplessly turned his head away. He knew he couldn’t meet the expectations of his Rock Branch Anbu members.

Seeing Kitsuchi’s reaction, the Rock Branch Anbu people could only sigh in resignation.

They understood in their hearts that this wasn’t Kitsuchi’s fault. It was because they were not from the Konoha headquarters.

At the front of the procession, Madara Uchiha and Ryun Uchiha walked along, chatting and laughing, seemingly indifferent to everything around them.

Onoki chimed in with a few words from time to time, engaging in conversation with them. Nara Luming followed silently behind, responsible for recording and observing the surroundings.

Everything proceeded smoothly as planned, without the slightest hindrance or surprise.

When Ryun Uchiha arrived at the Tsuchikage building, he noticed that the seat originally belonging to Madara Uchiha was actually left empty.

It seemed like a silent invitation. So, Madara Uchiha smiled and guided Ryun Uchiha towards that main seat.

Ryun Uchiha accepted this arrangement without hesitation. He sat steadily in the main seat, exuding a sense of confidence and authority.

Madara Uchiha sat in the first seat to his right, right next to him.

Next, the Konoha side’s people took their seats one after another, arranged according to their status and importance.

And in the first seat to Ryun Uchiha’s left sat Onoki, representing the Rock Branch side.

When everyone was seated, the meeting room was filled with a tense and expectant atmosphere.

Both sides unanimously turned their gazes towards Ryun Uchiha, as if he were the central figure of this meeting.

Ryun Uchiha felt the stares of everyone present. His gaze slowly swept over each person in the room, finally resting on Nara Luming.

Nara Luming gave a slight nod, indicating everything was ready.

Upon receiving the signal, Ryun Uchiha took a notebook from Nara Luming and gently placed it on the table before him. He took a deep breath, adjusted his sitting posture to appear more imposing.

Then, Ryun Uchiha’s gaze swept across the room again, meeting each person’s eyes, before he spoke, "The main task of our gathering here today is to observe the state of the people’s livelihood in the Rock Branch.

Everyone knows, for a village to truly become strong, it must put the people first..."

Ryun Uchiha chattered on at great length. Apart from Onoki and Hatake Sakumo, who listened with shining eyes and constantly took notes, others, including Madara Uchiha, were somewhat drowsy.

There really was no help for it! Just look at them. When it comes to fighting, they are simply fearless. But if you want to discuss politics with them, well, apologies, they definitely can’t keep up!

However, Ryun Uchiha did not push too hard. After all, the most important task of the people he brought was to ensure his personal safety.

His purpose in speaking at length here was simply to instill his ideological concepts into Onoki, and to pass on some village governance experience, so that the living conditions of the Rock Branch villagers could be improved.

At this moment, Onoki sat below, listening attentively to Ryun Uchiha’s words. Not only did he listen very seriously, he even recorded them word for word.

Clearly, Onoki attached great importance to what Ryun Uchiha was saying and had already resolved that after this Konoha inspection group left, he must immediately start working to improve people’s livelihood, diligently study and summarize Konoha’s experience, in order to raise the standard of living in his Rock Branch.

After about two hours, Ryun Uchiha finally concluded his serious and economically forward-looking speech.

He slowly raised his head, his gaze sweeping around the room, his sharp eyes seeming to pierce through each person’s heart.

"Now," his voice was low and powerful, "if you have any questions, any requests, you can bring them up. I will consider them based on the actual situation."

Just then, a slight commotion arose from the crowd. A figure slowly stepped forward and knelt on the ground. It was Kitsuchi.

Kitsuchi clenched his teeth tightly, as if having made a great resolve. Then he raised his head, looked directly at Ryun Uchiha, and said, "Lord Hokage, I have a request. I wonder if you could consider opening trade for the technological ninja tools and new-style ninja gear, or issuing more sets to us?"

As soon as his words fell, the entire scene instantly fell silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone looked at Kitsuchi in surprise. The Rock Branch Anbu ninja especially looked at him with grateful eyes. At this moment, Kitsuchi appeared like a deity in their eyes.

One must know, this issue had always been a taboo in everyone’s hearts. No one dared to bring it up easily, not even Onoki remained silent on the matter.

However, Kitsuchi had stepped forward without hesitation, placing this issue that everyone knew about but no one dared to mention on the table. His failure to read the situation and his rash opening of his mouth now caused Onoki to feel panic.

"Silence! You unfilial son! Don’t you know the Hokage controls all the ninja of the land? The peace and stability we enjoy today are entirely due to the Hokage’s wise decisions! And you, how dare you make such an absurd suggestion!" Onoki trembled with anger, reproaching him with heart-wrenching severity.

He knew in his heart that his son had indeed made a grave mistake this time.

If he did not criticize him severely, not only might his son lose his life, but he could also implicate the entire family.

Although as a father, he was in great pain, in this situation, he had no choice but to bear the pain and sacrifice for the sake of protecting his son’s safety.

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